Lodestar Chapter 5
Chapter Five That night, Albert slept pretty well, given the violent beating he received from Virgil, the day before. but at one point, he had a very harsh night terror. Chad woke up and held him close, letting him cry. "It's all right, buddy," Chad said, rocking him gently as if he were a baby, "Chad's here, Virgil ain't gonna hurt you any more. I'll see to that." The next morning, Chad went to work for a couple of hours, and Albert stayed in at the apartment, watching some TV. Chad had some breakfast delivered from Floyd's Café, and he enjoyed it. He looked around the room, and he felt safe. Wrapped in the soft pink blanket that Ronnie Randall had given him, he felt safe. At noon, Chad came back, and he and Albert went for a trip outside of Lodestar. They drove up to Dallas and Fort Worth and made a couple days of it. Meanwhile, Chad's parents, Eric and Felicia, along with their daughter, Jennifer, helped move Chad's things to a house that Truett Hemphill had once owned. Truett had left town after confessing all, and even Alzada threw him over. She actually had been going out with Virgil, all the time. That was a real slap in the face. Truett vowed to get even with the two traitors. So, in order to get even with those two, Truett gave the Hutchinsons his own former house, a lovely majestic home on the north side of town. It was beautiful. The entire community pitched in, even the Hales, who had changed their opinion of Truett, but not of Alzada and Virgil. It had been revealed that Alzada had cheated on Truett with Virgil! "Wow, this will be a huge undertaking for two guys," Frieda Cottle said as she loaded the groceries she had bought into the kitchen. "Maybe not," Flo Hartley said, as she was vacuuming the hallway, "I think it's nice." "Truett gave me orders to make sure that the best staff is found, possible," Lois Yoakum grinned, as she was directing the movers into putting some dining room furniture, "he set aside a stipend for Chad and Albert to live on!" "Wow, that is astonishing," Marie Hale said, as she expertly cleaned the sideboard, "I never thought I would see the day when Truett would change his stripes, but I guess when he found out that Alzada was cheating on him with Virgil, and that the baby was Virgil's and not his, all bets were off. He made full confession, and threw all his money behind getting this place set up and Chad and Albert having a nice place to live and money for them to live on. It's amazing what can happen to someone." A few days later, Chad and Albert were given instruction to come to the new house. It was ready for him. Truett, thanks to Claire Floyd and Jennifer Hutchinson, knew of Albert's autism and PTSD, and his need for comforting things, so he stocked his room with plush animals to make him feel secure. For them both, he set up offices with computers and everything. The entire community smiled as Chad and Albert walked in. Albert smiled very shyly, "Thanks, everyone," he said. He was a man of few words and was often very quiet, but he was aware. He felt the love of the community he was in. And he felt very safe. Chad wrapped his arms around Albert and held him close. "Welcome home, Albie," he said softly, "welcome to our new home, babe." Meanwhile, two residents were very angry and slithered away from the celebration. Alzada and Virgil. "That damned Truett," she seethed, "firing you and leaving me with nothing!" "Yeah, babe," Virgil said, "that Truett is glad he's gotten out of town, otherwise I'd have had to kill him." However, unbeknownst to the two, and overhearing the entire exchange, there was Truett himself! He knew what they were up to, and they were going to fail. Now was his time to strike at both of his enemies. He grabbed Alzada and Virgil and slammed them against the outside wall of the shed. "You leave those two alone," he hissed, "you get me?!" "And what if we don't?" Alzada sniffed. "Then I will make you famous for the slut that you are," he said grimly, "and as for you, Roberts, I will make you suffer! I've not yet begun on you two! This is only the beginning. If I can make Chad Hutchinson and Albert Dawson's life a bit easier by allowing them to live in some good home, having some good food and having a bit of fun, then you know what, it was worth spending all that money, because it went to a very good cause. I am glad they are being helped. You two leave, or I will see you both removed from this town for good!" Virgil and Alzada fled the scene and headed back to the hotel room he lived in. Only to find out they couldn't get in! The door locks had been changed! They stormed to the office and demanded what was going on. "You were told to pay your rent," the office manager yelled "and you didn't! Now, you have no place to live. Go find another place! You're not welcome here!" "Fine!" Virgil snapped, and pulled out a gun. He shot the office manager in cold blood and killed her outright. He grabbed the master key, got to the room, gathered his things, and Alzada stole the money that was in the register and in the safe. They then jumped into Alzada's car, and they drove off into the night. The next morning, the sheriff's office was out in force looking for the murderers. Category:Lodestar Episodes